Happy Birthday. We can't believe it was a year ago that we brought this little guy home!

The first year of a child's life is unimaginably long, especially after a couple of months of having him.
After the sleep deprivation passes and the child starts to respond, you really feel like you're starting all over with a new child.
Then he begins to do more and more things, and you find you can do more and more things. A million little habits and mannerisms change, and the year must take forever for all of this to come about!
Then by the end of the year, he's a full fledged toddler, able to poke and destroy about anything. And accomplish disgusting cullinary displays

Most animals grow up so much quicker. A panda is mature somewhere between 4 and 7 years (depending on where it goes to school), and a dog can buy cigarettes by the time he is 2.

If Samuel matured at that rate, he would look like this:


or, if something went wrong, like this:


Imagine how quickly that year would go! "OK son, it's been a year. Now it's time for you to seek your fortune."
"Great, dad. I've been getting a little restless around here. I think I set up an import business for Chinese goods."
"Don't you think you might want to wait until you're 2 to do that? The extra year might be a good learning experience."

But instead, he's still a little munchkin that has to take his silky snilky with him everywhere he possibly can, chewing on the whole time.


Speaking of cloth and dirt...the washing machine is broken.
Should we get some pictures of the Hatfield laundromat? It's a very international experience!